Difranco Goes Her Own Way

She gets a lot of attention for cultivating her large, fervent audience on her own, avoiding major labels and a conventional career to remain as fiercely independent as her music.

But the center of Ani DiFranco's surprising success is the strength of her songs. From a base in folk music, she added a live drummer to her acoustic guitar and now includes a band that has electric bass and keyboards.

And though she kept control of her material on her own independent record company in her hometown of Buffalo, N.Y., her latest album, ``Little Plastic Castle,'' had its highest debut on the Billboard chart, entering at No. 22 with virtually no airplay.

Tough, vulnerable, rocking and serene, DiFranco takes her fans on a kaleidoscopic trip in her concerts. And now the secret seems to be out: Her first headlining arena show ever sold out at the Mullins Center in Amherst, Mass., last weekend; her headlining show at the Palace Theatre, 246 College St., New Haven, on Saturday is also a sellout.

Don't worry. She should be back in the area as soon as June, playing Great Woods amphitheater in Mansfield, Mass., June 24, and some date in Connecticut -- either at the Meadows Music Theatre in Hartford or the Oakdale Theatre in Wallingford -- on June 23.

Chris Brown and Kate Fenner open the show at the Palace on Saturday at 8 p.m.. Information: (203) 789-2120.